午夜时分，月光最为皎洁。

  灵气谷宛如一头沉睡的巨兽，在银色的月光下舒展着身躯。七彩灵雾如呼吸般升腾起伏，谷中心的混沌灵泉水面波光粼粼，映照着繁星点点的夜空——那些光点并非静止不动，而是缓缓旋转，仿佛整个山谷就是一个微缩的宇宙。

  但这份宁静即将被鲜血和烈火打破。

  在泉眼东侧的石崖下，林尘如同雕像般静卧于阴影之中。他的呼吸缓慢而轻柔，每一次呼气都精准地控制在最小的幅度，不会引起一丝灵力波动。掌心的“星隐符”散发出极其微弱的银光，将他与周围环境完美地融为一体——这是星峰的秘术，除非以灵光境·日光境或更高境界的神识刻意扫描，否则极难察觉。

  星眼，满负荷运转。

  夜色中透出光芒，将泉水中央的黑色石碑的每一个细节都清晰地映照出来。

  那石碑高一丈三尺，宽三尺七寸，漆黑如墨，表面刻着古老的蛇形符文，缓缓扭动，仿佛活物一般。每当月光皎洁之时，符文便会闪烁一下，一缕灰黑色的雾气便会从石碑底部逸出——那是稀释了千倍的冥界魔气，悄无声息地污染着这处修炼圣地。

  “冥界封灵阵……”

  林辰在心中默默念诵着。

  这是一个专门用于封印混沌之气泄漏点的古老魔阵。阵核有三个眼睛位置，排列成“天、地、人”三才组合。一旦启动，阵法范围内所有非魔性灵力都会被压制，同时释放出腐蚀骨骼、侵蚀灵魂的冥界毒气。

  破坏该阵列的唯一方法是同时摧毁阵列的三个眼点。

  此刻，每个阵列之眼都有了自己的守护者。

  左侧阵眼旁，一个身形高大、竹节般的身影赫然出现，他身着灰色长袍，双手插于袖中，指尖闪烁着幽幽的绿色光芒。他每呼吸一次，周围的苔藓便枯萎凋零，石头也随之风化。他的骨蚀毒术已臻至“毒染万物”的境界。此人名为“竹长老”，在冥宫青云支中以诡计多端、阴险狡诈而臭名昭著，曾在灵光境初期毒害了三位正道修士。

  中央阵法眼处，一个赤裸上身、肌肉发达的男子盘腿而坐，身上伤痕累累，如同蟑螂般爬满全身。腰间两枚黑色弯钩沾满了暗红色的血迹，散发出甜腻的血腥味——这是他血魔之身吞噬了至少百名修士的精髓后留下的狰狞印记。他绰号“血屠夫”，表面上是赵虎雇佣的外援，实则是冥宫安插的卧底，专精于杀戮。

  右方阵中，一位身材矮小的长者闭着眼睛坐着，似乎在休息。

  But Lin Chen's Stellar Eye saw the vertical pattern between the elder's eyebrows pulsating in some mysterious rhythm. Each pulsation sent out an invisible thread of divine sense like spider silk, weaving a dense perception web across thirty zhang. The elder had no name; Netherworld Palace disciples all called him the "Stele Keeper." He had lurked in Spirit Qi Valley for three years, dedicated to guarding the star tablet seal.

  More troublesome was that the elder's position happened to be the array's "Life Gate."

  Once a strong assault occurred, the elder could instantly trigger the array's counterattack, where everyone within would become sacrificial offerings to the poison miasma.

  "Must wait for Han Xing..."

  Lin Chen suppressed his breathing even lower.

  The agreed time of midnight's third quarter still had... fifteen breaths left.

  He slowly mobilized the Chaos Star Vortex within his dantian.

  The gray vortex began to accelerate its rotation, the nine-attribute source spirit qi flowing through his meridians, gathering momentum. In his left palm, an extremely fine thread of starlight began to condensethis was the secret technique "Stellar Needle Pierce" recorded in the "Stellar Sensing Chapter," specifically for breaking array nodes, but required ten breaths to accumulate power.

  Ten breaths.

  The spring surface suddenly and soundlessly cracked open a fine fissure.

  Not a physical crack, but... a ripple in space.

  Three zhang beneath the water, the star tablet fragment sealed for unknown millennia began to awaken, sensing the approach of a force from the same origin.

  Lin Chen felt the Star Pattern between his eyebrows slightly heat up.

  Not pain, but a kind of... resonance.

  The vision from Stellar Eye penetrated the water, vaguely seeing the ancient star chart floating on the fragment's surfacenot a simple pattern, but a manifestation of a certain great Dao, each star's trajectory containing the ultimate principles of heaven and earth.

  Five breaths.

  From the west side of the stone cliff, behind vines, starlight flickered three times.

  Signal.

  Han Xing had arrived.

  Lin Chen's right palm Stellar Needle Pierce accumulation was complete, left hand already gripping the map jade slip given by Liu Ruyanmight be useful at a critical moment.

  Three breaths.

  Two breaths.

  One breath

  "Act!"

  Han Xing's voice transmission exploded like thunder!

  In the next instant, two figures simultaneously erupted!

  Han Xing transformed into a streak of starlight, charging straight at the central Blood Butcher. In mid-air, right hand clenched, a longsword completely condensed from stellar power had already howled outsword named "Starfall," the opening move of Stellar Peak's ultimate sword art, its strike like a meteor falling to earth, with no turning back!

  "Coming well!"

  Blood Butcher grinned and rose, crossed hooks swinging upward!

  Where the hook blades passed, blood fiend demonic energy condensed into seven ghost claw phantoms, tearing through the air, emitting piercing shrieks! Those ghost claws were not illusions, but substantial baleful energy coalescence, nails glowing with poisonous green lightclearly having integrated poison techniques into the blood fiends.

  Clang!!!

  The moment sword and hooks collided, the entire valley trembled!

  Shockwaves exploded, the spring surface was forcibly pressed down half a chi, water splashes scattering like arrows, striking stone walls with crackling explosions!

  Almost simultaneously with Han Xing's attack, Lin Chen lunged toward the left Bamboo Elder.

  Star-water Steps pushed to their limit, his body ghosted across three zhang, right palm Stellar Needle Pierce stabbing directly at the opponent's dantianthe core node for poison technique operation, and also the weakest point of full-body defense!

  "Reckless fool!"

  Bamboo Elder sneered, the hand extending from his sleeve had completely turned dark green, palm poison mist condensing into a spinning vortex shield.

  "Bone-Corrosion Poison Shield"!

  This was his life-saving secret skill cultivated over twenty years, having once blocked a full-strength strike from a Spiritual Light Realm·Moon Radiance Stage cultivator. The shield surface densely covered with fine poison spikes; any attack making contact would instantly be corroded by the potent poison, even spiritual energy becoming tainted.

  He had absolute confidence that this Condensation Stage brat wouldn't even break through the shield's surface layer before being eroded into bone by the poisonous gas.

  But

  The moment Stellar Needle Pierce touched the poison shield, sudden mutation occurred!

  Sss!

  Like a red-hot iron needle plunging into butter, the poison shield was easily pierced!

  Not corrosion, not dissolution, but... pure penetration!

  The silver short blade's momentum unabated, stabbing straight toward the dantian!

  "Impossible!"

  Bamboo Elder's face paled in horror, but it was too late to retreat.

  He watched helplessly as that silver gleam pierced through his protective demonic energy, penetrated flesh, and stabbed deep into his dantian.

  Then...

  Bang!

  Within the dantian, that poison core condensed from thirty years of cultivation... shattered.

  Not cracked, not damaged, but... completely pulverized!

  "Ah!"

  A piercing scream resounded through the valley, containing endless terror and disbelief.

  Poisonous dark green blood simultaneously gushed from Bamboo Elder's seven orifices, his skin rapidly ulcerated, peeled off, revealing stark white bone beneath. The poison energy flowing through his meridians lost control, rebounding on itself, every inch of flesh and blood corroding, dissolving.

  In just three breaths, a demonic master at the peak of Spiritual Light Realm·Starlight Stage turned into a pool of stinking pus.

  Soul extinguished, bones vanished.

  One strike, fatal.

  But Lin Chen had no time to catch his breath.

  Because the elder on the right had opened his eyes and formed seals.

  Those eyes... had no pupils.

  Only a deep, abyss-like darkness.

  Where pupils should be, were two spinning Netherworld curse patterns.

  "Netherworld Spirit SealHeaven, Earth, Man Three Talents Array Activate!"

  The aged voice scraped like sandpaper on stone, each syllable carrying an eerie resonance, as if not issuing from the throat but rising from the depths of the Nine Nether.

  On the black tablet surface, the seven thickest runes suddenly blazed with blinding blood-red light!

  Not normal red light, but... light condensed from fresh blood.

  Blood light shot upward, weaving, entangling in mid-air, instantly coagulating into an upside-down giant bowl.

  The bowl's walls were composed of densely packed Netherworld curse patterns.

  Each pattern writhed, breathed, like living viscera.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  The moment the array activated

  Boom!

  Invisible pressure crushed down like a myriad-zhang mountain peak!

  Lin Chen felt his entire body tightly constrained, every joint groaning, every muscle trembling. The stellar power flowing through his meridians instantly became sluggish, viscous, circulation speed plummeting by forty percent!

  Even more terrifying, the inside of the giant bowl began to seep dark green poison mist.

  Not ordinary poison miasma.

  But... the Netherworld Palace forbidden technique "Nine Nether Soul-Corrosion Smoke."

  Wherever the poison mist passed, ground moss withered, rocks weathered, even the free-floating spiritual energy in the air was polluted into gray-black. A wisp of poison mist drifted onto the corner of Lin Chen's robethe fabric instantly carbonized, peeled off, revealing silver-glowing skin beneathstellar power automatically resisting.

  "Junior Brother, beware the poison smoke!" Han Xing shouted sharply, Starfall sword sweeping aside Blood Butcher's double hooks, trying to rush to support.

  "Trying to leave? Ask my Blood Fiend Hooks first!"

  Blood Butcher grinned, scars all over his body splitting open simultaneously, spraying out sweet-scented bloody mist!

  The bloody mist coagulated into nine ferocious blood pythons mid-air, each as thick as a bucket, python bodies densely covered with barbs, eye pupils burning with crimson flames.

  Nine pythons surged together, roaring as they lunged at Han Xing!

  Han Xing forced to defend, curtain of stellar sword light cascading out.

  Clang! Clang! Clang!

  Metal clashing sounds linked into one continuous roar, each strike erupting with blinding sparks.

  The two plunged back into bitter combat.

  Meanwhile, on Lin Chen's side, crisis arrived.

  Seven dark green poison blades, emitting piercing air-rending sounds, slashed from different angles!

  Where blade winds passed, even space left faint corrosion traces.

  Poison blades not yet arrived, blade winds had already sliced through Lin Chen's protective stellar radiance!

  Skin surface instantly displayed seven black lines!

  Deadly poison entering the body!

  "Ugh!"

  Lin Chen grunted, blood simultaneously seeping from seven orifices.

  That blood... was also black.

  Poisonous gas spread through meridians, madly eroding the star vortex.

  But he gritted his teeth, forcibly suppressing the intense pain, divine sense plunging into the map jade slip.

  Vast information flashed through his mind, finally locking onto a passage:

  "Beneath the Chaos Spirit Spring, three zhang deep, lies an ancient star tablet fragment. Three cun beside the tablet, there is a natural stone crevice leading directly to a three-hundred-zhang deep earth fire vein. If pure yang force is injected into the crevice, it can draw earth fire upward, incinerating all yin evil. However, this action is perilous; earth fire turbulence could incinerate the valley and extinguish all spiritual life. Exercise caution."

  Earth fire!

  Pure yang fire, overcoming all yin evil under heaven!

  But... how to draw it forth?

  Lin Chen's thoughts raced.

  Stellar power wasn't pure yang, but the chaos attribute encompassed all things, able to simulate any attribute.

  Only, simulating pure yang force required reversing the star vortexan extremely high risk. The slightest mishap, star vortex collapse, cultivation completely lost.

  "No other choice..."

  A look of resolve flashed in his eyes.

  Immediately retreating five steps, hands forming seals.

  Within his dantian, the Chaos Star Vortex... began reversing!

  The gray vortex, originally rotating clockwise, now forcibly turning counterclockwise!

  Nine-attribute source spirit qi instantly went chaotic!

  Fire attribute stripped, purified, compressed!

  The other eight attributes wildly clashed, rampaging through meridians!

  Pfft!

  Lin Chen spat out a mouthful of blood.

  The blood hitting the ground actually carried faint gray threadsthat was star vortex damage, primordial essence leaking out.

  But he gritted his teeth, persisting.

  One breath, two breaths, three breaths...

  Meridians tearing, dantian wailing.

  But within his palms, a cluster of blazing white flame arduously condensed.

  The core temperature so high it distorted light rays, surrounding air emitting crackling explosions, as if about to ignite at any moment.

  Around the flame, space slightly collapsedthat was pure yang force too concentrated, causing spatial anomalies.

  "A futile struggle!"

  The Stele Keeper sneered, withered hand grasping through the air.

  Within the array, poison smoke abruptly contracted, condensing into seven dark green poison blades, each three chi long, blade surfaces densely covered with fine poisonous barbs.

  Seven blades shot forth simultaneously, sealing all of Lin Chen's escape routes!

  Blade winds arrived, skin cracking!

  "Nowearth fire draw!"

  Lin Chen's palms slammed the blazing white flame fiercely toward the ground!

  Rumble!!!

  From beneath the earth came a roar like a primordial beast awakening!

  That wasn't sound, but... the pulse of the earth.

  The entire Spirit Qi Valley shook violently!

  On cliff walls, countless massive stones tumbled down, smashing into the spring eye, splashing towering water columns!

  Cracks like spiderwebs wildly spread across the black tablet surface, emitting crunching shattering sounds!

  Then

  Crimson fire pillars shot upward from beneath the tablet!

  That fire wasn't ordinary flame.

  But... earth heart magma condensed over hundreds of millions of years, birthing pure yang earth fire!

  The flame was crimson-gold, core temperature enough to melt metal and dissolve iron. Where it passed, air burned into vacuum channels, even light was swallowed.

  Pure yang overcomes yin evil, earth fire incinerates Netherworld!

  "Ahhhhh!"

  First to bear the brunt, the Stele Keeper couldn't even finish half a scream.

  His body's protective demonic energy, before the earth fire, melted like snow meeting the blazing sun.

  The withered figure twisted, carbonized, disintegrated within the flames.

  Even his soul spiritcouldn't escapethoroughly purified by pure yang fire.

  Simultaneously

  Left array eye, the pus Bamboo Elder dissolved was evaporated dry by earth fire, array eye exposed, instantly incinerated.

  Central array eye, the blood fiend demonic energy beneath Blood Butcher's feet was struck by earth fire's residual force, array eye patterns cracking.

  But Blood Butcher reacted extremely fast, roaring, blood fiend demonic energy frantically pouring into the array eye, attempting repairs.

  "Don't even think!"

  Han Xing seized the opportunity, Starfall sword transforming into nine stellar afterimages, simultaneously stabbing toward the array eye cracks!

  Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

  Cracks expanded!

  The array... collapsed!

  The upside-down black giant bowl shattered like glass piece by piece, dispersing into sky-full black specks, then purified by earth fire's residual force, vanishing without trace.

  Restraints disappeared, pressure dissipated.

  Lin Chen's body lightened, one knee hitting the ground, breathing heavily.

  Just now, reversing the star vortex had injured his primordial essence. If not adjusted timely, hidden dangers might remain.

  But he couldn't attend to that now.

  Because from within the tablet's fissure was erupting... a treasure that made his soul tremble.

  Chaos qi.

  Purified to the extreme, ancient as if from the beginning of creation... primordial chaos qi.

  Gray, misty, like smoke.

  Yet containing the rhythm of stars' birth and destruction, the echo of cosmic primeval.

  Each breath, he could feel every cell's joyous celebration.

  The Chaos Stellar Body, trembling frantically.

  Desire.

  Unprecedented desire.

  "Junior Brother, absorb quickly!"

  Han Xing repelled Blood Butcher, urgently urging: "The array is broken, chaos qi will rapidly disperse. The chance is only now!"

  Lin Chen nodded, forcibly suppressing injuries, sitting cross-legged.

  Hands formed seals, placed on knees.

  Full force operation of "Chaos Stellar Scripture."

  The moment the technique was urged

  Hum!

  The entire Spirit Qi Valley's spiritual energy, as if finding its ruler, madly surged toward Lin Chen!

  Seven-colored spirit mists condensed into substantial vortex, rotating with him as the center, diameter exceeding ten zhang, stirring the moonlit sky.

  The spring surface rippled, those chaos qi leak points at the water's bottom, dormant for thousands of years, awakened, erupting denser gray qi.

  But the most astonishing was the tablet fissure.

  There, gray chaos qi like a bursting flood, poured into Lin Chen's body.

  Not a single thread, not a single stream, but... like the Yangtze River's great flow, ceaseless torrent!

  Lin Chen felt as if he had become a bottomless well.

  No, a... black hole.

  Madly devouring all spiritual energy, all chaos, all energy around.

  Within the dantian, the Chaos Star Vortex began... transformation.

  Originally three cun diameter gray vortex, after absorbing massive chaos qi, rapidly inflated!

  Four cun, five cun, six cun...

  Each cun expansion, cultivation skyrocketed!

  The bottleneck of Condensation Stage fifth layer peak, under chaos qi's scouring, fragile as paper.

  Pop!

  A soft sound echoed within his body.

  Not sound, but... a breakthrough of realm.

  Condensation Stage sixth layer!

  But this was only the beginning.

  Chaos qi endlessly continued, star vortex continuing to expand.

  Sixth layer early stage, middle stage, late stage... peak!

  Pop!

  Another breakthrough!

  Condensation Stage seventh layer!

  Seventh layer early stage, middle stage, late stage...

  When the star vortex diameter reached nine cun, Lin Chen felt he touched... some boundary.

  Condensation Stage seventh layer peak.

  Only a thin line away from eighth layer.

  But this thin line was like a chasm.

  Because the vortex's expansion approached his meridians' bearing limit.

  Meridians wailed, dantian throbbed with swelling pain.

  Continue absorbing, might... burst.

  "Not enough..."

  Lin Chen gritted his teeth, veins on his temples bulging.

  Five days later arena match, Poison Elder was Spiritual Light Realm·Moon Radiance Stage.

  Condensation Stage seventh layer peak, still insufficient.

  Must... continue!

  He forcibly urged the technique, attempting to squeeze the last trace of potential from his meridians.

  Within the dantian, the star vortex began... overload rotation.

  Rotation speedthree times faster than usual!

  Meridians began... showing fine cracks.

  Skin surface, seeping pale golden blood beadsthat was primordial essence damage.

  But Lin Chen disregarded.

  He only had one thought: grow stronger, survive.

  Boom!

  Within the dantian, a muffled roar.

  Not explosion, but... breakthrough's thunderous boom.

  Condensation Stage eighth layer!

  But the price was... blood simultaneously overflowing from seven orifices.

  Meridian cracks expanded tenfold.

  But he couldn't attend to these.

  Because chaos qi still poured in.

  Star vortex still expanded.

  Eighth layer early stage, middle stage...

  When the star vortex diameter reached one chi two cun, Lin Chen felt his consciousness... began blurring.

  Not fainting.

  But... connecting with something more ancient, more vast.

  Deep within the valley bottom, hundred zhang below.

  There, a... fragmented tablet.

  Tablet height two zhang, width five chi, entire body dark silver, surface carved with intricate star charts. Those star charts weren't stationary, but like living things slowly flowing, deducing complete cycles of star birth, growth, peak, decline, annihilation.

  And in the star chart's center, embedded a... pale silver mark.

  Identical to the Star Pattern between his eyebrows.

  But more ancient, more... complete.

  That was the legacy mark left by an ancient Chaos Stellar Body.

  Now, that mark emitted gentle yet intense summoning fluctuations.

  As if saying:

  Come.

  Find me.

  Then...

  Inherit me.

  Lin Chen's heart pounded like war drums.

  Blood boiling, Star Pattern heating.

  Within the unseen, a voice told him: this mark was the key to his rapid breakthrough to the Spiritual Light Realm.

  But...

  Danger.

  Extreme danger.

  Father said, Netherworld Palace wanted to use his blood to sacrifice to the star tablet, awaken the remnant soul within.

  And this mark before him, perhaps was... the remnant soul's vessel?

  Once touched, would he receive the legacy, or... be possessed?

  Lin Chen didn't know.

  But he knew he must descend.

  Because five days later, he needed sufficient strength to survive.

  Otherwise, death.

  "Senior Brother Han."

  He transmitted to Han Xing battling Blood Butcher in the distance.

  "Guard for me a momentI'm descending to the valley bottom."

  Han Xing repelled Blood Butcher with one sword, turning back startled: "Junior Brother, the valley bottom is forbidden! All past disciples who entered never returned! Even Inner Sect elders don't dare venture lightly! There's an ancient demon sealed there, you'd be seeking death!"

  "I know."

  Lin Chen stood up, looking toward the spring's center.

  There, at the tablet fissure, chaos qi still erupted.

  And beneath the fissure, vaguely visible... a deep passage.

  Passage edges, ancient star patterns flickered.

  As if guiding direction.

  Toward earth bottom hundred zhang, where the star tablet lay.

  Toward... choice of life or death.

  "But I must go."

  Lin Chen hesitated no longer, leaping into the fissure.

  Behind, Han Xing's urgent cry:

  "Junior Brother!"

  And Blood Butcher's ferocious laughter:

  "Self-seeking death! Hahahahathat thing in the valley bottom has starved a thousand years, your flesh and blood just whet its appetite!"

  Sound, rapidly fading away.

  Replaced byendless darkness.

  Cold, viscous, as if capable of swallowing all light and sound darkness.

  Lin Chen's body fell.

  Speed increasing faster, ears only whistling wind, and... his own drum-like heartbeat.

  He could feel, below, summoning fluctuations growing stronger.

  As if an invisible hand dragged his soul.

  Between eyebrows Star Pattern, hot as if burning.

  Not pain, but... an indescribable palpitation.

  As if long-separated reunion, as if destined by fate.

  但理智却发出强烈的警告：危险！离开！不要靠近！

  然而...

  他能撤退吗？

  五天后，毒长老在竞技场等着他。

  如果他现在撤退，那就走投无路了。

  如果他现在晋级……或许，还有一线希望。

  即使这渺茫的机会需要孤注一掷……也要付出一切。

  “父亲...”

  林辰低声说道。

  他不知道父亲在时空乱流中的哪个位置。

  但他知道，他的父亲当年肯定也面临过类似的选择。

  退缩，苟延残喘？

  或者……勇敢地走下去，赌上一生？

  父亲选择了后者。

  现在轮到他了。

  “然后……去赌博。”

  林辰闭上了眼睛。

  放弃一切抵抗。

  让那股召唤之力将他拖向……深渊。

  朝着……

  越来越接近的星级标记。

  朝着……

  在印记深处，那只……缓缓睁开的眼睛。

  那双没有瞳孔的眼睛。

  只是一小块……混乱。

  而在混乱之中……

  一个超越时间意义的古老声音，在他灵魂深处回荡：

  “终于……等你了……”